See If You Have What It Takes To Survive Another Tournament In 'Dead or Alive 5'

by Jason CiprianoSeptember 27, 2012 at 12:00AM
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Fighting games come in all shapes and sizes. Some longstanding franchises like Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat have been around since the 16-bit era, and others like BlazBlue and Skullgirls just launched this console generation and are trying to get a foothold in an increasingly crowded market. Those are the games that bookend the history of fighting, but what about the games that came in between – like the 3D fighters. Some great games like the Tekken and Virtua Fighter series are all still well-established games that still see somewhat regular releases. However, there is one franchise that have infamously split the fighting game community for a host of different reasons, and like it or not, Dead or Alive is back with an all new game… and the same old jiggle physics. Here's what you need to know about Dead or Alive 5.

Who:Tecmo Koei's Team Ninja are tackling the fighter once again, picking up where they left off after the Xbox 360 exclusive Dead or Alive 4. One noticeable absence is series’ creator Tomonobu Itagaki, with DOA5 being the first full-fledged entry into the series without his contribution.

What:Dead or Alive 5 is a 3D fighting game from a series that has traditionally stood out from the pack due to its voluptuous, and particularly bouncy, ladies. However, once you get past all the eye candy, there's an intensely challenging, combo-driven, technical fighter underneath. Pick your favorite character from the game's 20+ options and have at your friends, either online (online pass required) or locally, or take on the challenge of the game's story and unravel the next chapter of Doatec and the Dead or Alive tournament.

Where:DOA5 is available at retail on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. If you'd prefer, you can also download the 5.6 GB game from the PlayStation Network.

Why:
The DOA games have always had a bit of a bad reputation in the fighting game arena, but DOA5 seems to go out of its way to prove that this isn't just a button masher. Playing through the elaborate story mode presents you with bonus missions that help teach you the ins and outs of the controls, as well as some of the franchise specific nuances. You can then take your newly learned skills online, or into one of the game's other modes (Survival and Time Attack) to see just what you've learned. And if that isn't enough for you, maybe you'd like to take some of the Virtua Fighter guest stars for a spin on one of the newly designed stages and see if Sara Bryant and Akira have the chops to hang with Katsumi and Hayate. Overall, Dead or Alive 5 pushes the series forward, and takes the focus of the game off of the ladies' bouncy parts, and puts it on their fists (don't worry, they didn't skimp on the bouncy parts).